Unmanned flight device, management device, operation device and flight management method

ABSTRACT

An unmanned flight apparatus that flies on the basis of instruction information acquired from an operation apparatus, the unmanned flight apparatus includes a storage that stores apparatus identification information for identifying the unmanned flight apparatus, an instruction information acquisition part that acquires the instruction information, an authentication processing part that authenticates that the instruction information is proper by comparing registered authentication information stored in a storage medium with biometric information of an operator transmitted periodically from an operation apparatus for operating the unmanned flight apparatus, and a flight controller that flies the unmanned flight apparatus on the basis of the instruction information within an operable range defined by a relationship between the registered authentication information and the apparatus identification information, on a condition that the authentication processing part determines that the instruction information is proper.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation application of InternationalApplication number PCT/JP2020/005803, filed on Feb. 14, 2020, whichclaims priority under 35 U.S.C § 119(a) to International Applicationnumber PCT/JP2019/006083, filed on Feb. 19, 2019. The contents of theseapplications are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to an unmanned flight apparatus, amanagement apparatus for managing the unmanned flight apparatus, anoperation apparatus for operating the unmanned flight apparatus, and aflight management method for managing the unmanned flight apparatus.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2018-52474discloses an aircraft control system in which an instruction istransmitted to an unmanned flight apparatus via a network, and theunmanned flight apparatus performs various operations on the basis ofthe received instruction.

When the unmanned flight apparatus receives an instruction via thenetwork, the apparatus may receive not only an authorized instructionbut also an unauthorized instruction. If the unmanned flight apparatusoperates on the basis of the unauthorized instruction, the unmannedflight apparatus performs an undesirable operation, which may cause asafety problem.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure focuses on these points, and an object of thepresent disclosure is to improve safety of an unmanned flight apparatus.

An unmanned flight apparatus according to the first aspect of thepresent disclosure is an unmanned flight apparatus that flies on thebasis of instruction information acquired from an operation apparatus,the unmanned flight apparatus includes a storage that stores apparatusidentification information for identifying the unmanned flightapparatus, an instruction information acquisition part that acquires theinstruction information, an authentication processing part thatauthenticates that the instruction information is proper by comparingregistered authentication information stored in a storage medium withbiometric information of an operator transmitted periodically from anoperation apparatus for operating the unmanned flight apparatus, and aflight controller that flies the unmanned flight apparatus on the basisof the instruction information within an operable range defined by arelationship between the registered authentication information and theapparatus identification information, on a condition that theauthentication processing part determines that the instructioninformation is proper.

A management apparatus according to the second aspect of the presentdisclosure is a management apparatus capable of communicating with aplurality of unmanned flight apparatuses, the management apparatusincludes a storage that stores a) a plurality of pieces of apparatusidentification information for identifying the plurality of unmannedflight apparatuses and b) a plurality of pieces of registeredauthentication information associated with a plurality of operators or aplurality of operation apparatuses capable of operating at least any oneof the plurality of unmanned flight apparatuses, an informationreceiving part that receives, from the first unmanned flight apparatus,a) first apparatus identification information for identifying a firstunmanned flight apparatus, which is one of the plurality of unmannedflight apparatuses, and b) instruction information including biometricinformation of an operator periodically received by the first unmannedflight apparatus from the operation apparatus in association with eachother, an authentication part that generates an authentication resultindicating that the instruction information received by the firstunmanned flight apparatus is proper information on a condition that thebiometric information included in the instruction information is thesame as first registered authentication information associated with thefirst unmanned flight apparatus corresponding to the first apparatusidentification information among the plurality of registeredauthentication information, and an information transmission part thattransmits the authentication result to the first unmanned flightapparatus.

A flight management method according to the third aspect of the presentdisclosure includes the steps of transmitting, to a management apparatuswhich can communicate with an unmanned flight apparatus, registeredauthentication information stored in a storage medium of an unmannedflight apparatus in association with apparatus identificationinformation for identifying the unmanned flight apparatus, transmitting,by the management apparatus, an authentication result indicating whetheror not the registered authentication information is stored in a storagein association with the apparatus identification information receivedfrom the unmanned flight apparatus to the unmanned flight apparatus,acquiring instruction information including a) an instruction for flyingthe unmanned flight apparatus and b) biometric information of anoperator periodically transmitted from an operation apparatus foroperating the unmanned flight apparatus, and flying the unmanned flightapparatus, on the basis of the instruction information, within anoperable range indicated by the authentication result if the biometricinformation included in the instruction information is the same as theregistered authentication information.

An operation apparatus according to the fourth aspect of the presentdisclosure is an operation apparatus for operating an unmanned flightapparatus, the operation apparatus includes a biometric informationacquisition part that periodically acquires biometric information of anoperator operating the operation apparatus, and a transmission part thatperiodically transmits the biometric information acquired by thebiometric information acquisition part to the unmanned flight apparatusthat authenticates the operator by comparing registered authenticationinformation stored in a storage medium with the biometric informationreceived from the operation apparatus.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of a flight apparatus managementsystem S.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of an unmanned flightapparatus 1.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a management apparatus 3.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a management database storedin a storage 32.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of a management apparatus 3a as another example of the management apparatus 3.

FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing in theflight apparatus management system S.

FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram showing a variation of processing in theflight apparatus management system S.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described through exemplaryembodiments of the present invention, but the following exemplaryembodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims, and notall of the combinations of features described in the exemplaryembodiments are necessarily essential to the solution means of theinvention.

[Outline of Flight Apparatus Management System S]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of a flight apparatus managementsystem S. The flight apparatus management system S includes an unmannedflight apparatus 1, an operation apparatus 2, and a management apparatus3. The unmanned flight apparatus 1 is an apparatus that can performunmanned flight on the basis of instruction information acquired from anexternal apparatus (for example, the operation apparatus 2 or acomputer), and is a drone, for example. The unmanned flight apparatus 1may fly on the basis of the instruction information received from theoperation apparatus 2, or may fly on the basis of the instructioninformation received from a computer that outputs predeterminedinstruction information.

The operation apparatus 2 is an apparatus used by an operator to operatethe unmanned flight apparatus 1, and includes an operation part (forexample, an operation button or an operation joystick), a display part(for example, a display screen), a biometric information acquisitionpart, and a transmission part. The operation apparatus 2 receives anoperation of the operator, and transmits instruction information basedon the received operation to the unmanned flight apparatus 1. Thebiometric information acquisition part periodically acquires biometricinformation of the operator operating the operation apparatus 2, andnotifies the transmission part about the acquired biometric information.The transmission part periodically transmits the provided biometricinformation to the unmanned flight apparatus 1.

The unmanned flight apparatus 1 and the operation apparatus 2 transmitand receive various types of information via a wireless communicationline. The unmanned flight apparatus 1 and the operation apparatus 2 mayuse a wireless communication line W1 for directly transmitting andreceiving information by transmitting and receiving radio waves to andfrom each other, or may use a second wireless communication line W2 fortransmitting and receiving information via a base station B of a mobilephone network.

The management apparatus 3 is a computer that transmits and receivesvarious types of information to and from the unmanned flight apparatus 1via the base station B and the network N, and functions as, for example,an authentication server that authenticates the instruction informationtransmitted from the operation apparatus 2 to the unmanned flightapparatus 1. The management apparatus 3 executes various processes forpreventing the unmanned flight apparatus 1 from operating abnormally.

Details will be described later, but the management apparatus 3 monitorswhether or not it is acceptable to allow the unmanned flight apparatus 1to perform the operation corresponding to the instruction information onthe basis of, for example, the contents of the instruction informationreceived by the unmanned flight apparatus 1. More specifically, themanagement apparatus 3 monitors a) whether or not the instructioninformation is transmitted by an operator having authority to operatethe unmanned flight apparatus 1, b) whether or not the contents of theoperation corresponding to the instruction information are permitted tothe operator, and c) whether or not the unmanned flight apparatus 1 isflying in a prohibited area.

The configurations of the unmanned flight apparatus 1 and the managementapparatus 3 will be described in detail below.

[Configuration of Unmanned Flight Apparatus 1]

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of the unmanned flightapparatus 1. The unmanned flight apparatus 1 includes a firstcommunication part 11, a second communication part 12, a storage mediumattaching part 13, a flight mechanism 14, a camera 15, a storage 16, anda controller 17. The controller 17 includes an instruction informationacquisition part 171, an authentication processing part 172, a flightcontroller 173, a data collecting part 174, and an encryptor 175.

The first communication part 11 is a communication interface fortransmitting and receiving information to and from the operationapparatus 2. The first communication part 11 includes, for example, awireless communication controller for communicating with the operationapparatus 2 via the first wireless communication line W1. The firstcommunication part 11 notifies the instruction information acquisitionpart 171 about the instruction information received from the operationapparatus 2.

The second communication part 12 is a communication interface fortransmitting and receiving information to and from the managementapparatus 3 via the base station B and the network N. The secondcommunication part 12 includes, for example, a wireless communicationcontroller for communicating with the management apparatus 3 via thesecond wireless communication line W2. The second communication part 12transmits, to the management apparatus 3, information necessary forauthenticating by determining whether or not the instruction informationreceived from the operation apparatus 2 is proper information, andreceives an authentication result from the management apparatus 3. Thestorage medium attaching part 13 notifies the authentication processingpart 172 of the authentication result received from the managementapparatus 3.

The storage medium attaching part 13 is an interface for attaching astorage medium M1 (e.g. memory card M1). The storage medium M1 can beany storage medium with non-volatile memory that can store data. Thestorage medium M1 may be a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cardprovided by a telecommunication carrier that provides the secondwireless communication line W2.

The storage medium M1 stores registered authentication information, forexample. The registered authentication information is information givento an operator permitted to fly the unmanned flight apparatus 1, and isinformation such as a) operator identification information foridentifying the operator, b) a password associated with the operatoridentification information, or c) information that is generated byencrypting the operator identification information or password. Theregistered authentication information may be text information orbiometric information of the operator.

In the following description, the operator identification information isused as the registered authentication information, and the registeredauthentication information may be referred to as a “registered operatorID.” In the flight apparatus management system S according to thepresent embodiment, the operator who operates the unmanned flightapparatus 1 using the operation apparatus 2 can operate the unmannedflight apparatus 1 by attaching the storage medium M1 storing his/herown registered operator ID to the storage medium attaching part 13.

It should be noted that the operator may allow the operation apparatus 2to transmit the registered operator ID or password to the unmannedflight apparatus 1 by a) attaching the storage medium M2 storing his/herown registered operator ID also to the operation apparatus 2 or b)inputting his/her own registered operator ID, password, or the like intothe operation apparatus 2. Further, the biometric informationacquisition part of the operation apparatus 2 may periodically (that is,at every predetermined time interval) acquire the biometric informationof the operator, and the transmission part may periodically transmitinstruction information including the acquired biometric information tothe unmanned flight apparatus 1.

The biometric information is a fingerprint pattern, a vein pattern, acolor and a shape of a pupil, an image of a face, information stored inan integrated circuit embedded in a body, or voice, for example. Theunmanned flight apparatus 1 flies on the basis of the instructioninformation received from the operation apparatus 2 on a condition thatthe received biometric information matches the registered authenticationinformation stored in advance in the storage medium M1. If the receivedbiometric information does not match the registered authenticationinformation stored in advance in the storage medium M1, the unmannedflight apparatus 1 returns to, for example, a preset position (forexample, a base).

The transmission part of the operation apparatus 2 may determine a timeinterval with which the biometric information is transmitted to theunmanned flight apparatus 1 on the basis of the position at which theunmanned flight apparatus 1 is flying. For example, when the unmannedflight apparatus 1 is flying at a position where a first security levelis assigned, the operation apparatus 2 shortens the time interval withwhich the biometric information is transmitted as compared with the casewhere the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is flying at a position where asecond security level lower than the first security level is assigned.The operation apparatus 2 controls the time interval by referring to,for example, the position information transmitted by the unmanned flightapparatus 1 and the data in which the position and the security levelare associated with each other. By having the operation apparatus 2operating in this manner, the risk that an operator other than theregistered operator flies the unmanned flight apparatus 1 in an areawith a high security level can be reduced.

The authentication processing part 172 of the unmanned flight apparatus1 may determine a time interval with which the operation apparatus 2transmits the biometric information to the unmanned flight apparatus 1on the basis of the position at which the unmanned flight apparatus 1 isflying, and may inform the operation apparatus 2 about the determinedtime interval. For example, when the unmanned flight apparatus 1 isflying at a position where the first security level is assigned, theauthentication processing part 172 shortens the time interval with whichthe operation apparatus 2 transmits the biometric information ascompared with the case where the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is flyingat a position where the second security level lower than the firstsecurity level is assigned. The authentication processing part 172controls the time interval by referring to, for example, data in whichthe position of the unmanned flight apparatus 1 and the security levelare associated with each other. By the authentication processing part172 operating in this manner, the risk that an operator other than theregistered operator flies the unmanned flight apparatus 1 in an areawith a high security level can be reduced.

The flight mechanism 14 includes a mechanism such as a motor and apropeller required for flying the unmanned flight apparatus 1. Theflight mechanism 14 operates each mechanism to fly the unmanned flightapparatus 1 at a speed, a direction, and an altitude determined on thebasis of control data inputted by the flight controller 173.

The camera 15 generates a photographic image by photographing an areaaround the unmanned flight apparatus 1. The camera 15 inputs thegenerated photographic image to the data collecting part 174.

The storage 16 includes a storage medium such as a Read Only Memory(ROM), a Random Access Memory (RAM), or a hard disk. The storage 16stores a program executed by the controller 17. Further, thenon-volatile memory (for example, ROM) of the storage 16 storesapparatus identification information (hereinafter referred to as“apparatus ID”) for identifying the unmanned flight apparatus 1. Thestorage 16 may temporarily store the photographic image generated by thecamera 15.

The controller 17 includes a Central Processing part (CPU), for example.The controller 17 functions as the instruction information acquisitionpart 171, the authentication processing part 172, the flight controller173, the data collecting part 174, and the encryptor 175 by executingthe program stored in the storage 16. The controller 17 may be formed ofa circuit other than the CPU.

The instruction information acquisition part 171 acquires theinstruction information transmitted by the operation apparatus 2 via thefirst communication part 11. The instruction information is numericalinformation or text information for designating a speed, a direction,and an altitude at which the unmanned flight apparatus 1 will fly. Theinstruction information includes the authentication information used fordetermining whether or not the instruction information is properinformation. The authentication information is, for example, an operatorID, a password, or biometric information, which is information foridentifying the operator. The instruction information acquisition part171 notifies the authentication processing part 172 and the flightcontroller 173 about the acquired instruction information.

The authentication processing part 172 acquires the registered operatorID stored in the storage medium M1, and uses the acquired registeredoperator ID to authenticate that the instruction information acquired bythe instruction information acquisition part 171 is proper. The“instruction information is proper” means that the instructioninformation is transmitted in response to an operation of an operatorhaving the authority to operate the unmanned flight apparatus 1. If theinstruction information is not proper, it means, for example, that theinstruction information has been sent to the unmanned flight apparatus 1in an unauthorized manner by a person who does not have the authority tooperate the unmanned flight apparatus through hacking.

For example, if the authentication information (for example, operatorID) included in the instruction information is the same as theregistered operator ID stored in the storage medium M1, or if theauthentication information (for example, password or biometricinformation) included in the instruction information corresponds to theregistered operator ID, the authentication processing part 172determines that the instruction information is proper. The “case wherethe authentication information included in the instruction informationcorresponds to the registered authentication information” includes, forexample, a) a case where the authentication information included in theinstruction information includes the registered authenticationinformation and b) a case where the authentication information includedin the instruction information is the same as the information after aconversion of the registered authentication information according to apredetermined rule.

The authentication processing part 172 transmits the instructioninformation acquired from the operation apparatus 2 by the instructioninformation acquisition part 171, the apparatus ID, and the registeredoperator ID in association with each other to the management apparatus3, and receives a result of the authentication made by the managementapparatus 3. Details of authentication processing in the managementapparatus 3 will be described later, but the management apparatus 3transmits the authentication result indicating that the instructioninformation is proper information to the unmanned flight apparatus 1 ona condition that the operator ID as the authentication informationincluded in the instruction information is the same as the registeredoperator ID or that the password or the biometric information as theauthentication information corresponds to the registered operator ID.The authentication processing part 172 notifies the flight controller173 of the authentication result received from the management apparatus3.

Before having the flight controller 173 start the operation based on theinstruction information, the authentication processing part 172 maydetermine whether or not to operate the flight controller 173 on thebasis of the relationship between the registered operator ID and theapparatus ID. For example, after the unmanned flight apparatus 1 isturned on, the authentication processing part 172 authenticates that theoperator corresponding to the registered operator ID is authorized tooperate the unmanned flight apparatus 1. The authentication processingpart 172 transmits the apparatus ID and the registered operator ID tothe management apparatus 3 in association with each other after, forexample, the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is turned on, and determineswhether or not the operator may operate the unmanned flight apparatus 1on the basis of the authentication result received from the managementapparatus 3.

If it is determined that the operator may operate the unmanned flightapparatus 1, the authentication processing part 172 notifies the flightcontroller 173 that the operation is permitted, and if it is determinedthat the operator must not operate the unmanned flight apparatus 1, theauthentication processing part 172 notifies the flight controller 173that the operation is prohibited. If the authentication processing part172 determines that the operator must not operate the unmanned flightapparatus 1, the flight controller 173 controls the power supply of theunmanned flight apparatus 1 such that the power supply is turned off,for example.

The authentication processing part 172 may execute the authenticationprocessing at the predetermined time interval instead of executing theauthentication processing every time the instruction information isreceived. By having the authentication processing part 172 operating inthis manner, the influence of a delay in operation caused by executingthe authentication processing can be reduced.

In addition, the authentication processing part 172 may execute theauthentication processing when the authentication processing part 172receives the instruction information for performing an operation notincluded in an operable range defined by the relationship between theregistered operator ID and the apparatus ID. The operable rangeincludes, for example, a) an operation condition range such as a maximumspeed, a maximum acceleration, or a maximum altitude in which theunmanned flight apparatus 1 is allowed to fly, b) a range of area wherethe unmanned flight apparatus 1 is allowed to fly, and c) a range offunctions in which the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is allowed toperform. By having the authentication processing part 172 operating inthis manner, the unmanned flight apparatus 1 can be prevented fromperforming an inappropriate operation while preventing a delay inoperation from occurring due to the authentication processing.

The flight controller 173 controls the flight mechanism 14 to fly theunmanned flight apparatus 1. Under the condition that the authenticationprocessing part 172 determines that the instruction information acquiredby the instruction information acquisition part 171 is proper, theflight controller 173 flies, on the basis of the instructioninformation, the unmanned flight apparatus 1 within the operable rangedetermined by the relationship between the registered operator ID andthe apparatus ID.

For example, the flight controller 173 controls the flight mechanism 14on the basis of the instruction information after the authenticationprocessing part 172 transmits the registered operator ID and theapparatus ID in association with each other to the management apparatus3 and receives the authentication result from the management apparatus3. The authentication result includes operation condition informationindicating the operation condition range. The operation condition rangeis, for example, a range equal to or less than the maximum speed,acceleration, or altitude allowed when the unmanned flight apparatus 1flies. The operation condition information is determined, for example,for each registered operator ID, apparatus ID, or combination of theregistered operator ID and the apparatus ID.

For example, the flight controller 173 flies the unmanned flightapparatus 1 within the operation condition range determined on the basisof the authentication result received from the management apparatus 3 inresponse to the authentication processing part 172 transmitting theapparatus ID and the registered operator ID in association with eachother to the management apparatus 3. Specifically, the flight controller173 flies the unmanned flight apparatus 1 within the range of the speed,acceleration, or altitude indicated by the operation conditioninformation, on the basis of the instruction information.

In some cases, depending on the operator, it may be desirable to changethe area in which the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is allowed to beflown. For example, a highly-skilled operator has a low risk of causinga problem when flying the unmanned flight apparatus 1 over an area wherepeople are present, but it is dangerous for a less-skilled operator tofly the unmanned flight apparatus 1 over an area where people arepresent. Further, depending on the weight or size of the unmanned flightapparatus 1, the area in which the unmanned flight apparatus 1 isallowed to be flown may differ. Depending on the combination of theoperator and specifications of the unmanned flight apparatus 1, the areain which the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is allowed to fly may differ.

Thus, the authentication result may include flight range informationindicating an allowed flight range of the unmanned flight apparatus 1.The flight range information includes position information such aslatitude/longitude information, altitude information, and the likeindicating a boundary of a range in which the unmanned flight apparatus1 is allowed to fly. The flight range information is determined, forexample, for each registered operator ID, apparatus ID, or combinationof the registered operator ID and the apparatus ID.

The flight controller 173 flies the unmanned flight apparatus 1 suchthat the flight position of the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is includedin the allowed flight range indicated by the flight range information.The flight controller 173 may transmit a message to an externalapparatus when it is determined that the unmanned flight apparatus 1will reach a position not included in the allowed flight range of theunmanned flight apparatus 1 if the unmanned flight apparatus 1 continuesits flight based on the instruction information. The external apparatusis, for example, the operation apparatus 2 or a computer of anadministrator of the unmanned flight apparatus 1.

In addition, it may be desirable to make the operation allowed to beperformed using the unmanned flight apparatus 1 different depending onthe operator. For example, there is a case where press personnel whohave been given permission in advance or a person who has paid apredetermined fee is permitted to photograph an event venue from abovefor the purpose of news reporting, and photography by anyone other thanthese people is prohibited. In such a case, the authentication resultmay include function range information indicating the range of functionsthat are allowed to be performed by the unmanned flight apparatus 1. Thefunction range information is, for example, information indicating whichfunctions are permitted to be performed by the unmanned flight apparatus1 among a plurality of functions such as a function of photographing, afunction of gripping an object, a function of discharging a liquid, anda function of radiating light or infrared rays.

The function range information is determined, for example, for eachregistered operator ID, apparatus ID, or combination of the registeredoperator ID and the apparatus ID. The flight controller 173 performs thepermitted function included in the range indicated by the function rangeinformation, and does not perform the non-permitted functions notincluded in the range indicated by the function range information.

Since the flight controller 173 does not perform an operation outsidethe operable range determined on the basis of the operation conditioninformation, the flight range information, or the function rangeinformation as described above, the unmanned flight apparatus 1 can beprevented from flying for the purpose of performing an inappropriateaction such as destroying a building or obtaining information illegally.

If the flight controller 173 determines that the operator ID serving asthe authentication information included in the instruction informationacquired by the instruction information acquisition part 171 is not thesame as the registered operator ID, the flight controller 173 maytransmit data indicating that an unauthorized instruction has beenreceived to the external apparatus. When the instruction informationacquisition part 171 acquires the instruction information forinstructing an operation exceeding the operable range defined by therelationship between the registered operator ID and the apparatus ID,the flight controller 173 may transmit the data indicating that anunauthorized instruction has been received to the external apparatus.The external apparatus is, for example, the operation apparatus 2 or thecomputer of the administrator of the unmanned flight apparatus 1.

Due to the operator or the administrator of the unmanned flightapparatus 1 being notified that the unauthorized instruction has beenreceived in this way, the operator or the administrator of the unmannedflight apparatus 1 can find that the unmanned flight apparatus 1 hasbeen taken over by a third party. Therefore, the operator or theadministrator of the unmanned flight apparatus 1 can remotely controlthe unmanned flight apparatus 1 to discontinue its flight to prevent theunmanned flight apparatus 1 from performing a dangerous operation.

The flight controller 173 may perform a predetermined operation forpreventing the unmanned flight apparatus 1 from performing the dangerousoperation in addition to or instead of transmitting the data indicatingthat an unauthorized instruction has been received to the externalapparatus. The predetermined operation is, for example, an operation oflanding the unmanned flight apparatus 1 at the nearest safe location, anoperation of decreasing the flight speed, or an operation of shuttingoff the power source after landing. By having the flight controller 173operating in this manner, the unmanned flight apparatus 1 can beprevented from performing dangerous operations.

The data collecting part 174 collects data during the flight of theunmanned flight apparatus 1. The data collected by the data collectingpart 174 is, for example, photographic data obtained by photographingthe area around the unmanned flight apparatus 1, or weather dataindicating the weather condition around the unmanned flight apparatus 1.The data collecting part 174 inputs the collected data to the encryptor175.

The data collecting part 174 may transmit the collected data to apredetermined server while the biometric information received from theoperation apparatus 2 matches the registered authentication informationor while the biometric information has a predetermined correlation withthe registered authentication information, and does not need to transmitthe collected data to the predetermined server while the biometricinformation received from the operation apparatus 2 does not match theregistered authentication information. This collected data includes, forexample, date and time information, information indicating a flightposition, information of an operator, and the like. The data collectingpart 174 may transmit these pieces of information at the timing when thebiometric information that matches the registered authenticationinformation is received. When the time interval with which the operationapparatus 2 transmits the biometric information is shortened while theunmanned flight apparatus 1 is flying in an area where a high securitylevel is assigned, the unmanned flight apparatus 1 can transmit the dataat shorter time intervals while the unmanned flight apparatus 1 isflying in the area where the high security level is assigned as comparedwith a case where the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is flying in an areawhere a low security level is assigned.

The encryptor 175 encrypts the data collected by the data collectingpart 174 using a private key stored in the storage medium M1 to createencrypted data. The private key is assigned to, for example, theoperator corresponding to the registered operator ID stored in thestorage medium M1, and is used for preventing a third party other thanthe operator from accessing the data collected by the data collectingpart 174.

The encryptor 175 stores generated encrypted data in the storage mediumM1, or transmits the encrypted data to an external computer via thesecond communication part 12. The encryptor 175 may transmit theencrypted data to blockchain. By having the encrypted data transmittedto the blockchain, the encrypted data can be stored without beingtampered with by a third party.

[Configuration of Management Apparatus 3]

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of the management apparatus3. The management apparatus 3 includes a communication part 31, astorage 32, and a controller 33. The controller 33 includes aninformation receiving part 331, an authentication part 332, aninformation transmission part 333, and a price determination part 334.

The communication part 31 is a communication interface for transmittingand receiving various types of information to and from the unmannedflight apparatus 1, the operation apparatus 2, or other computers. Thecommunication part 31 includes, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network)controller for accessing the network N. The communication part 31receives the information such as the apparatus ID and the registeredoperator ID from the unmanned flight apparatus 1, and notifies theinformation receiving part 331 about the received information. Thecommunication part 31 transmits the authentication result inputted fromthe information transmission part 333 to the unmanned flight apparatus1. Further, the communication part 31 transmits information indicating aprice inputted from the price determination part 334 to the operationapparatus 2 or an external computer.

The storage 32 includes a storage medium such as a ROM, a RAM, and ahard disk. The storage 32 stores a) a plurality of apparatus IDs foridentifying a plurality of unmanned flight apparatuses 1 and b) aplurality of registered operator IDs associated with a plurality ofoperators or a plurality of operation apparatuses 2 capable of operatingat least any one of the plurality of unmanned flight apparatuses 1. Theapparatus ID may be information unique to the unmanned flight apparatus1 or information common to the unmanned flight apparatuses 1 having thesame model name.

The storage 32 stores the operation range information indicating theoperable range of the unmanned flight apparatus 1 in association witheach of the plurality of registered operator IDs. The storage 32 storesa management database in which the registered operator ID, the apparatusID, and the operable range are associated with each other, for example.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the management database storedin the storage 32. In the management database shown in FIG. 4, theregistered operator ID, the apparatus ID, and the operation rangeinformation are associated with each other. The operation rangeinformation is information indicating a range of operation in which theoperator corresponding to the registered operator ID is allowed to makethe unmanned flight apparatus 1 corresponding to the apparatus IDassociated with the registered operator ID perform. Although theapparatus ID in FIG. 4 indicates the model name of the unmanned flightapparatus 1, the apparatus ID may be identification informationdifferent for each unmanned flight apparatus 1.

The management database shown in FIG. 4 includes information indicating,as the operation range information indicating the operable range, a) themaximum speed, the maximum altitude, and the area at which the operatoris allowed to fly the unmanned flight apparatus 1 and b) whether or notphotography is possible. Since the operator with the registered operatorID of 0002 is more skilled than the operator with the registeredoperator ID of 0001, a case is assumed in which the operator with theregistered operator ID of 0002 can fly the unmanned flight apparatus 1at a greater speed and to a greater altitude.

Each of “A,” “B,” and “C” indicating an area is information thatindicates latitude/longitude included in an area in which the unmannedflight apparatus 1 is allowed to fly, and includes, for example,latitude/longitude information of a boundary line of the area. In theexample shown in FIG. 4, the sizes of the areas are set in the order ofarea A>area B>area C. The area A may correspond to an area where ahighly-skilled person is allowed to fly the unmanned flight apparatus 1,and the area C may correspond to an area where a low-skilled person isallowed fly the unmanned flight apparatus 1.

In the “photographing function,” “X” indicates that it is not permittedto perform the function of photographing the area around the unmannedflight apparatus 1 while the operator is flying the unmanned flightapparatus 1, and “0” indicates that it is permitted to perform thefunction of photographing. These pieces of information included in themanagement database can be preset or updated by the administrator of theunmanned flight apparatus 1. The administrator of the unmanned flightapparatus 1 updates the information specifying the operable range when,for example, the operator has undergone predetermined training orobtained a license of a high rank.

Referring back to FIG. 3, the controller 33 will be described in detail.The controller 33 includes a CPU, for example, and functions as theinformation receiving part 331, the authentication part 332, theinformation transmission part 333, and the price determination part 334by executing the program stored in the storage 32.

The information receiving part 331 receives a) a first apparatus ID foridentifying an unmanned flight apparatus 1 a, which is one of theplurality of unmanned flight apparatuses 1, and b) a first registeredoperator ID stored in the storage medium M1 attached to the unmannedflight apparatus 1 a from the unmanned flight apparatus 1 a inassociation with each other via the communication part 31. Theinformation receiving part 331 may receive the first apparatus ID andthe first registered operator ID in association with the instructioninformation received by the unmanned flight apparatus 1 from theoperation apparatus 2. The information receiving part 331 notifies theauthentication part 332 about the received information.

Further, the information receiving part 331 may receive, via thecommunication part 31, position information indicating a position atwhich the unmanned flight apparatus 1 a is flying from the unmannedflight apparatus 1 a. The information receiving part 331 notifies theprice determination part 334 of the received position information.

The authentication part 332 authenticates the unmanned flight apparatus1 a on the basis of whether or not the first registered operator ID isstored in the storage 32 in association with the first apparatus IDreceived by the information receiving part 331. The authentication part332 refers to, for example, the management database stored in thestorage 32 to specify the operable range of the unmanned flightapparatus 1 a that has transmitted the first registered operator ID. Theauthentication part 332 notifies the information transmission part 333of the authentication result including the information indicating thespecified range, and instructs the information transmission part 333 totransmit the authentication result to the unmanned flight apparatus 1 a.

Specifically, the authentication part 332 instructs the informationtransmission part 333 to transmit the authentication result indicatingthat the instruction information received by the unmanned flightapparatus 1 is proper information to the unmanned flight apparatus 1 aon the condition that the authentication information included in theinstruction information received by the information receiving part 331from the unmanned flight apparatus 1 a is the same as or corresponds tothe first registered operator ID.

The authentication part 332 may update the data in the managementdatabase. For example, the authentication part 332 manages the number ofyears that has elapsed since the apparatus ID and the operator ID wereregistered in the management database, and notifies the operator or theadministrator of the unmanned flight apparatus 1 about update guidanceinformation indicating that a license needs to be updated when thenumber of years elapsed reaches a predetermined number.

After a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the transmissionof the update guidance information, the authentication part 332 deletesdata associated with the apparatus ID of the unmanned flight apparatus 1that has reached a predetermined number of years since registration, ordata associated with the registered operator ID of the operator that hasreached a predetermined number of years since registration. Theauthentication part 332 leaves the data associated with the apparatus IDor registered operator ID undeleted if update processing is performedwithin a predetermined period of time after the update guidanceinformation has been transmitted. By having the authentication part 332operating in this way, it is possible to prevent outdated unmannedflight apparatus 1 from continuing to be used, or the unmanned flightapparatus 1 from being operated by an operator who may not havesufficient operating skills.

On the basis of the notification received from the authentication part332, the information transmission part 333 transmits, to the unmannedflight apparatus 1 a, an authentication result indicating whether or notthe first registered operator ID is stored in the storage 32 inassociation with the first apparatus ID received by the informationreceiving part 331. The information transmission part 333 may transmitthe authentication result including the operation range informationindicating the operable range specified by the authentication part 332to the unmanned flight apparatus 1 a.

The price determination part 334 determines a price for the operator touse the unmanned flight apparatus 1. The price determination part 334determines a price for flying the unmanned flight apparatus 1 on thebasis of, for example, the size of the operable range indicated by theoperation range information. The price determination part 334 transmitsthe price to an external computer or the like in association with theregistered operator ID via the communication part 31. The pricedetermination part 334 transmits the registered operator ID and theprice in association with each other to a server that creates billinginformation for the operator, for example.

The price determination part 334 can determine the price on the basis ofvarious conditions. For example, the price determination part 334determines the price on the basis of the positions where the unmannedflight apparatus 1 flew. In order to achieve this, the storage 32 storesa reference amount of the price corresponding to each of a plurality ofareas in a space in which the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is allowed tofly, and the information receiving part 331 acquires positioninformation indicating the position of the unmanned flight apparatus 1.The price determination part 334 determines the price corresponding tothe unmanned flight apparatus 1 a on the basis of the reference amountstored in the storage in association with the area including theposition indicated by the position information.

In the storage 32, the price for the area above a tourist attraction isset higher than the price for the area above a non-tourist attraction,for example. By setting the price for each area in this way, it ispossible to prevent the number of unmanned flight apparatuses 1 flyingin the area where many people want to fly the unmanned flight apparatus1 from increasing too much.

The price determination part 334 may determine the price on the basis ofthe distance the unmanned flight apparatus 1 flew. In order to achievethis, the storage 32 stores the flight distance and the reference amountof the price in association with each apparatus ID, and the informationreceiving part 331 obtains a plurality of pieces of position informationindicating a plurality of positions where the unmanned flight apparatus1 flew in association with each other. The price determination part 334specifies the distance the unmanned flight apparatus 1 flew on the basisof the plurality of pieces of position information. Then, the pricedetermination part 334 determines the price corresponding to theunmanned flight apparatus 1 on the basis of a) the determined flightdistance of the unmanned flight apparatus 1 and b) the reference amountstored in the storage 32 in association with the apparatus ID of theunmanned flight apparatus 1. Due to the price determination part 334determining the price on the basis of the flight distance in this way,it is possible to prevent the operator from flying the unmanned flightapparatus 1 longer than necessary.

Incidentally, it may be necessary to allow the unmanned flight apparatus1 to be used for different prices by different operators. For example,it is reasonable to offer operators who have paid a higher base fee inadvance a lower price for flying a particular area than those who havepaid a lower base fee. Therefore, the storage 32 may store the referenceamount of the price corresponding to each of the plurality of areas inthe space in which the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is allowed to fly, inassociation with each of the plurality of registered operator IDs. Theprice determination part 334 may determine the price corresponding tothe registered operator ID on the basis of a) the positions where theunmanned flight apparatus 1 flew and b) the reference amount stored inthe storage 32 in association with the registered operator ID includedin the instruction information transmitted to the unmanned flightapparatus 1 in order to fly the unmanned flight apparatus 1 among theplurality of registered operator IDs.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of a management apparatus 3a as another example of the management apparatus 3. The managementapparatus 3 a shown in FIG. 5 differs from the management apparatus 3 inthat an operation determination part 335 is provided instead of theprice determination part 334 in the management apparatus 3 shown in FIG.3. The management apparatus 3 a may include the operation determinationpart 335 together with the price determination part 334.

The operation determination part 335 determines whether or not contentof the operation performed by the operator is proper. In order for theoperation determination part 335 to determine whether or not the contentof the operation is proper, the storage 32 of the management apparatus 3a stores a plurality of unauthorized flight patterns which are flightpatterns of the unmanned flight apparatus 1 being in an unauthorizedflight state. The unauthorized flight pattern is a flight pattern thatflies the unmanned flight apparatus 1 at a dangerous speed oracceleration, or approaches a prohibited area.

The information receiving part 331 acquires a plurality of pieces ofposition information indicating a plurality of positions of the unmannedflight apparatus 1 in association with time. Then, if the flight patternof the unmanned flight apparatus 1 specified on the basis of theplurality of position information acquired by the information receivingpart 331 is similar to any one of the plurality of unauthorized flightpatterns stored in the storage 32, the operation determination part 335determines that the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is in the unauthorizedflight state. In this case, the operation determination part 335outputs, in association with the registered operator ID, informationindicating that the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is in the unauthorizedflight state.

The operation determination part 335 transmits information indicatingthat the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is in the unauthorized flight stateto the computer of the administrator of the unmanned flight apparatus 1via, for example, the communication part 31. By having the operationdetermination part 335 operating in this manner, it is possible toreduce a risk that the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is used in acts ofterrorism. In addition, by having the operation determination part 335operating in this way, the administrator of the unmanned flightapparatus 1 and the operators can recognize an operator who isperforming an operation which is not permitted, prohibit the operatorfrom operating the unmanned flight apparatus 1, and revoke the licensegiven to the operator.

The operation determination part 335 may specify the operation skill ofthe operator by comparing the content of the operation performed by theoperator with the content of the reference operation. The operationdetermination part 335 may transmit data indicating the specifiedoperation skill to another computer in association with information forspecifying the operator (for example, operator ID or name). Theoperation determination part 335 may output the operator, the type ofthe unmanned flight apparatus 1, and the operation skill in associationwith each other. By having the operation determination part 335outputting these pieces of data, it is easier for people looking forsomeone to operate the unmanned flight apparatus 1 to find anappropriate operator.

Further, the operation determination part 335 may output the informationfor identifying the unmanned flight apparatus 1 (for example, apparatusID), the information for identifying the operator, the time at which theoperation has been performed, and the content of the operation inassociation with each other. In this case, the operation determinationpart 335 may output these pieces of information in a manner such thatthe unauthorized operation can be distinguished from other operations.By having the operation determination part 335 outputting suchinformation, the administrator of the operator or the administrator ofthe unmanned flight apparatus 1 can easily investigate the situationwhen an unauthorized operation is performed.

The operation determination part 335 may search for the unmanned flightapparatus 1 and the operator that performed the unauthorized flight onthe basis of the position and the time specified on the basis of theimage information acquired via the information receiving part 331. Theimage information is, for example, an image of the unmanned flightapparatus 1 taken with a mobile terminal acquired from a victim who hasbeen unjustly pursued by the unmanned flight apparatus 1, and includesinformation indicating a shooting location and a shooting time (forexample, GPS information). Specifically, the operation determinationpart 335 identifies the unmanned flight apparatus 1 and the operator forwhich it is determined that the position and the time at which theunmanned flight apparatus 1 performed the unauthorized operation areequal to the shooting location and the shooting time indicated by theacquired image information. By having the operation determination part335 operating in this manner, the operator who has performed theunauthorized operation can be identified early, such that the operatorcan be prevented from performing the unauthorized operation.

[Processing in a Flight Apparatus Management System S]

FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing an example of processing in aflight apparatus management system S. The sequence diagram shown in FIG.6 starts when the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is turned on (step S11).When the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is turned on, the authenticationprocessing part 172 acquires the registered operator ID stored in thestorage medium M1 (step S12). The authentication processing part 172transmits the registered operator ID and the apparatus ID to themanagement apparatus 3 in association with each other to make anauthentication request to the management apparatus 3.

In the management apparatus 3, when the information receiving part 331receives the authentication request, the authentication part 332performs the authentication processing (step S13). Specifically, theauthentication part 332 specifies the operable range associated with theregistered operator ID and the apparatus ID by referring to themanagement database stored in the storage 32 (step S14), and transmitsthe authentication result indicating the specified operable range to theunmanned flight apparatus 1. The authentication processing part 172stores the information indicating the operable range indicated by thereceived authentication result in the storage 16 (step S15).

Thereafter, when the operator operates the operation apparatus 2, aninstruction for operating the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is inputted tothe operation apparatus 2 (step S16). The operation apparatus 2transmits the instruction information corresponding to the operationcontent to the unmanned flight apparatus 1.

The authentication processing part 172 acquires the operator ID includedin the instruction information received from the operation apparatus 2(step S17), and determines whether or not the acquired operator IDmatches the registered operator ID (step S18). If the authenticationprocessing part 172 determines that the operator ID does not match theregistered operator ID (NO in step S18), the authentication processingpart 172 notifies the operation apparatus 2 that an error has occurred.If the authentication processing part 172 determines that the operatorID matches the registered operator ID (YES in step S18), theauthentication processing part 172 instructs the flight controller 173to operate the unmanned flight apparatus 1 on the basis of theinstruction information received from the operation apparatus 2 (stepS19).

FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram showing a variation of the processing inthe flight apparatus management system S. In the sequence diagram shownin FIG. 6, after the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is turned on, theauthentication result indicating the operable range of the unmannedflight apparatus 1 is acquired from the management apparatus 3, and theinformation indicating the operable range indicated by the acquiredauthentication result is stored in the storage 16.

In contrast, the sequence diagram shown in FIG. 7 differs from thesequence diagram shown in FIG. 6 in that each time the unmanned flightapparatus 1 receives instruction information from the operationapparatus 2, the authentication processing part 172 transmits theinstruction information to the management apparatus 3 in associationwith the operator ID and the apparatus ID acquired from the instructioninformation.

When the operator operates the operation apparatus 2, the instructionfor operating the unmanned flight apparatus 1 is inputted to theoperation apparatus 2 (step S21). The operation apparatus 2 transmitsthe instruction information corresponding to the operation content tothe unmanned flight apparatus 1.

The authentication processing part 172 acquires the operator ID includedin the instruction information received from the operation apparatus 2(step S22). The unmanned flight apparatus 1 transmits the operator ID,the apparatus ID, and the instruction information to the managementapparatus 3 in association with each other.

In the management apparatus 3, when the information receiving part 331receives the operator ID, the apparatus ID, and the instructioninformation from the unmanned flight apparatus 1, the authenticationpart 332 specifies the operable range registered in the managementdatabase in association with the operator ID and the apparatus ID (stepS23). Subsequently, the authentication part 332 authenticates theinstruction information by determining whether or not the operationcontent indicated by the instruction information is included in thespecified operable range (step S24), and transmits the authenticationresult to the unmanned flight apparatus 1.

The authentication processing part 172 controls the flight controller173 on the basis of the authentication result received from themanagement apparatus 3 to operate the unmanned flight apparatus 1 (stepS25). Specifically, if the authentication result indicates that theinstruction information is proper, the authentication processing part172 causes the flight controller 173 to perform the operation indicatedby the instruction information. On the other hand, if the authenticationresult indicates that the instruction information is not proper, theauthentication processing part 172 transmits an error notification tothe operation apparatus 2 without causing the flight controller 173 toperform the operation indicated by the instruction information.

In this way, by having the authentication processing part 172transmitting the instruction information together with the operator IDand the apparatus ID to the management apparatus 3 and receiving theauthentication of the instruction information, the unmanned flightapparatus 1 can perform an appropriate operation even if the operablerange changes over time due to external factors such as airspacecongestion or weather conditions. It should be noted that, in order tosuppress the influence of delay caused by transmitting the instructioninformation to the management apparatus 3 and obtaining theauthentication result, the authentication processing part 172 maytransmit the instruction information to the management apparatus 3 andreceive the authentication on a condition that the instructioninformation for changing the operation of the unmanned flight apparatus1 by a predetermined level or more is received.

[First Variation]

The above description illustrates that the registered operator ID isstored in the storage medium M1 attached to the storage medium attachingpart 13 of the unmanned flight apparatus 1, but the unmanned flightapparatus 1 needs not have the storage medium attaching part 13 forattaching the storage medium M1. In this case, the registered operatorID is stored in an Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory(EEPROM) of the storage 16, for example. The administrator of theunmanned flight apparatus 1 can write the registered operator ID in theEEPROM using a computer, for example.

[Second Variation]

The above description illustrates processing in which the authenticationprocessing part 172 transmits the instruction information, the apparatusID, and the registered operator ID received from the operation apparatus2 to the management apparatus 3 in association with each other and themanagement apparatus 3 authenticates the instruction information, butthe processing of authenticating the instruction information may beperformed inside the unmanned flight apparatus 1. For example, theauthentication processing part 172 may execute processing equivalent tothe authentication processing performed by the management apparatus 3.That is, when the operator ID included in the instruction informationmatches the registered operator ID, the authentication processing part172 may determine that the instruction information is proper.

[Third Variation]

The above description illustrates the maximum speed, the maximumacceleration, the maximum altitude, the allowed flight range, and thefunction that is allowed to be performed as the operable range stored inthe storage 32, but the storage 32 may store specifications of theunmanned flight apparatus 1 (for example, the weight, the flyabledistance, the use, and the like of the unmanned flight apparatus 1) thatis allowed to be operated by the operator in association with theoperator ID. In this case, the authentication part 332 permits theoperation of the unmanned flight apparatus 1 on the condition that thespecifications corresponding to the apparatus ID received from theunmanned flight apparatus 1 correspond to the specifications of theunmanned flight apparatus 1 operable by the operator stored in thestorage 32 in association with the operator ID received from theunmanned flight apparatus 1.

[Effect of Flight Apparatus Management System S]

As described above, the unmanned flight apparatus 1 includes a) theauthentication processing part 172 that authenticates that theinstruction information is proper on the basis of the registeredauthentication information (for example, the registered operator ID)stored in the storage medium M1, and b) the flight controller 173 thatflies the unmanned flight apparatus 1, on the basis of the instructioninformation, within the operable range determined by the relationshipbetween the registered authentication information and the apparatusidentification information (for example, the apparatus ID) under thecondition that the authentication processing part 172 determines thatthe instruction information is proper. Due to the unmanned flightapparatus 1 having these configurations, the unmanned flight apparatus 1performs an operation on the basis of an operation within a rangeauthorized to the operator only when the instruction information isproper.

Therefore, the unmanned flight apparatus 1 does not perform anunauthorized operation due to the operator performing an operation thathe/she is not authorized to perform (for example, an operation whichcannot be performed with the operator's skill), nor does the unmannedflight apparatus 1 perform an unauthorized operation on the basis offalse instruction information transmitted by an unauthorized third partyfor fraudulent purposes. As a result, the safety of the unmanned flightapparatus 1 can be improved.

The present invention is explained on the basis of the exemplaryembodiments. The technical scope of the present invention is not limitedto the scope explained in the above embodiments and it is possible tomake various changes and modifications within the scope of theinvention. For example, the specific embodiments of the distribution andintegration of the apparatus are not limited to the above embodiments,all or part thereof, can be configured with any unit which isfunctionally or physically dispersed or integrated. Further, newexemplary embodiments generated by arbitrary combinations of them areincluded in the exemplary embodiments of the present invention. Further,effects of the new exemplary embodiments brought by the combinationsalso have the effects of the original exemplary embodiments.

What is claimed is:
 1. An unmanned flight apparatus that flies on thebasis of instruction information acquired from an operation apparatus,the unmanned flight apparatus comprising: a storage that storesapparatus identification information for identifying the unmanned flightapparatus; an instruction information acquisition part that acquires theinstruction information; an authentication processing part thatauthenticates that the instruction information is proper by comparingregistered authentication information stored in a storage medium withbiometric information of an operator transmitted periodically from anoperation apparatus for operating the unmanned flight apparatus; and aflight controller that flies the unmanned flight apparatus on the basisof the instruction information within an operable range defined by arelationship between the registered authentication information and theapparatus identification information, on a condition that theauthentication processing part determines that the instructioninformation is proper.
 2. The unmanned flight apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the authentication processing part determines a timeinterval with which the operation apparatus transmits the biometricinformation to the unmanned flight apparatus on the basis of a positionwhere the unmanned flight apparatus is flying, and instructs theoperation apparatus about the determined time interval.
 3. The unmannedflight apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the authenticationprocessing part shortens the time interval with which the operationapparatus transmits the biometric information when the unmanned flightapparatus is flying at a position where a first security level isassigned, as compared with a case where the unmanned flight apparatus isflying at a position where a second security level lower than the firstsecurity level is assigned.
 4. The unmanned flight apparatus accordingto claim 1, further comprising: a data collecting part that transmitsdata collected by the unmanned flight apparatus to a predeterminedserver while the biometric information received from the operationapparatus matches the registered authentication information or while thebiometric information has a predetermined correlation with theregistered authentication information, and does not transmit datacollected by the unmanned flight apparatus to the server while thebiometric information does not match the registered authenticationinformation.
 5. The unmanned flight apparatus according to claim 4,wherein the data collecting part transmits the data to the server at atiming when the biometric information that matches the registeredauthentication information is received from the operation apparatus. 6.The unmanned flight apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the flightcontroller transmits a message to the operation apparatus when it isdetermined that the unmanned flight apparatus will reach a position notincluded in flight range information if the unmanned flight apparatuscontinues its flight based on the instruction information, the flightrange information being included in an authentication result receivedfrom the authentication server in response to the authenticationprocessing part transmitting the apparatus identification informationand the registered authentication information to the authenticationserver in association with each other.
 7. The unmanned flight apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the flight controller transmits dataindicating that an unauthorized instruction has been received to anexternal apparatus if the flight controller determines that theauthentication information included in the instruction informationacquired by the instruction information acquisition part is not the sameas the registered authentication information.
 8. The unmanned flightapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the flight controller transmitsdata indicating that an unauthorized instruction has been received to anexternal apparatus when the instruction information acquisition partacquires the instruction information for instructing an operationexceeding an operable range defined by the relationship between theregistered authentication information and the apparatus identificationinformation.
 9. A management apparatus capable of communicating with aplurality of unmanned flight apparatuses, the management apparatuscomprising: a storage that stores a) a plurality of pieces of apparatusidentification information for identifying the plurality of unmannedflight apparatuses and b) a plurality of pieces of registeredauthentication information associated with a plurality of operators or aplurality of operation apparatuses capable of operating at least any oneof the plurality of unmanned flight apparatuses; an informationreceiving part that receives, from the first unmanned flight apparatus,a) first apparatus identification information for identifying a firstunmanned flight apparatus, which is one of the plurality of unmannedflight apparatuses, and b) instruction information including biometricinformation of an operator periodically received by the first unmannedflight apparatus from the operation apparatus in association with eachother; an authentication part that generates an authentication resultindicating that the instruction information received by the firstunmanned flight apparatus is proper information on a condition that thebiometric information included in the instruction information is thesame as first registered authentication information associated with thefirst unmanned flight apparatus corresponding to the first apparatusidentification information among the plurality of registeredauthentication information; and an information transmission part thattransmits the authentication result to the first unmanned flightapparatus.
 10. The management apparatus according to claim 9, whereinthe authentication part authenticates the first unmanned flightapparatus on the basis of whether or not the first registeredauthentication information is stored in the storage in association withthe first apparatus identification information received by theinformation receiving part.
 11. The management apparatus according toclaim 9, wherein the storage further stores operation range informationindicating an operable range of the unmanned flight apparatus inassociation with each of the plurality of pieces of registeredauthentication information, the authentication part specifies a range inwhich the first unmanned flight apparatus that transmitted the firstregistered authentication information is allowed to operate by referringto the storage, and the information transmission part transmits theauthentication result indicating the range specified by theauthentication part to the first unmanned flight apparatus.
 12. Themanagement apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising: a pricedetermination part that determines a price for flying the unmannedflight apparatus on the basis of a size of the operable range indicatedby the operation range information.
 13. The management apparatusaccording to claim 12, wherein the storage stores a reference amount ofthe price corresponding to each of a plurality of areas in a space inwhich the unmanned flight apparatus is allowed to fly, the informationreceiving part acquires position information indicating a position ofthe first unmanned flight apparatus, and the price determination partdetermines the price corresponding to the first unmanned flightapparatus on the basis of the reference amount stored in the storage inassociation with the area including the position indicated by theposition information.
 14. The management apparatus according to claim12, wherein the storage stores a flight distance and a reference amountof the price in association with each other for each piece of theapparatus identification information, the information receiving partobtains a plurality of pieces of position information indicating aplurality of positions where the first unmanned flight apparatus flew inassociation with each other, and the price determination part determinesa distance the first unmanned flight apparatus flew on the basis of theplurality of pieces of position information, and determines the pricecorresponding to the first unmanned flight apparatus on the basis of thereference amount stored in the storage in association with thedetermined flight distance and the first apparatus identificationinformation of the first unmanned flight apparatus.
 15. The managementapparatus according to claim 12, wherein the storage stores, inassociation with each of the plurality of pieces of registeredauthentication information, the reference amount of the pricecorresponding to each of a plurality of areas in the space in which theunmanned flight apparatus is allowed to fly, and the price determinationpart determines the price corresponding to the first registeredauthentication information on the basis of a) positions where the firstunmanned flight apparatus flew and b) the reference amount stored in thestorage in association with the first registered authenticationinformation included in instruction information transmitted to the firstunmanned flight apparatus in order to fly the first unmanned flightapparatus among the plurality of pieces of registered authenticationinformation.
 16. The management apparatus according to claim 9, whereinthe storage stores a plurality of unauthorized flight patterns which areflight patterns of the unmanned flight apparatus being in anunauthorized flight state, and the information receiving part mayacquire a plurality of pieces of position information indicating aplurality of positions of the first unmanned flight apparatus inassociation with a time, the management apparatus further comprising: anoperation determination part that outputs, in association with the firstregistered authentication information, information indicating that thefirst unmanned flight apparatus is in the unauthorized flight state if aflight pattern of the first unmanned flight apparatus specified on thebasis of the plurality of pieces of position information is similar toany one of the plurality of unauthorized flight patterns stored in thestorage.
 17. A flight management method comprising the steps of:transmitting, to a management apparatus which can communicate with anunmanned flight apparatus, registered authentication information storedin a storage medium of an unmanned flight apparatus in association withapparatus identification information for identifying the unmanned flightapparatus; transmitting, by the management apparatus, an authenticationresult indicating whether or not the registered authenticationinformation is stored in a storage in association with the apparatusidentification information received from the unmanned flight apparatusto the unmanned flight apparatus; acquiring instruction informationincluding a) an instruction for flying the unmanned flight apparatus andb) biometric information of an operator periodically transmitted from anoperation apparatus for operating the unmanned flight apparatus; andflying the unmanned flight apparatus, on the basis of the instructioninformation, within an operable range indicated by the authenticationresult if the biometric information included in the instructioninformation is the same as the registered authentication information.18. An operation apparatus for operating an unmanned flight apparatus,the operation apparatus comprising: a biometric information acquisitionpart that periodically acquires biometric information of an operatoroperating the operation apparatus; and a transmission part thatperiodically transmits the biometric information acquired by thebiometric information acquisition part to the unmanned flight apparatusthat authenticates the operator by comparing registered authenticationinformation stored in a storage medium with the biometric informationreceived from the operation apparatus.